Ali Baba
a poor woodcutter who discovered the secret of a thieves' den, entered with the phrase "Open Sesame". The thieves learned this and try to kill Ali Baba, but Ali Baba's faithful slave-girl foiled their plots. Ali Baba gave his son to her in marriage and keeps the secret of the treasure. Biography Childhood As a poor lad, Ali Baba lives in the town of Gulabad, somewhere in Central Asia, with his mother Chandbibi and elder brother Cassim(sometimes spelled as Qasim) who owned a small petty shop. Ali Baba's father Yousuf was a merchant in a faraway land who had to return since he last left when Ali Baba was born. poor Ali Baba made a living out of selling timber cut from the hills. Ali Baba went in search of his father and not only found him, but also rescued princess Marjeena from the guards of the king who murdered her father to become king. Both Marjeena and Ali Baba fell in love with each other. Then they were attacked, Marjeena was taken captive, and his father was killed. After their father's death, the greedy Cassim married a wealthy woman named Sultana, and became a well-to-do, building on their father's business. Ali Baba found out that Marjeena was being sold in the slave market, he borrowed money from Qasim, and used that to pay for Marjeena, and bring her home. Qasim wanted to recover his money, and as a result decides to evict Ali Baba from their family home. Ali Baba and his mother left the home. It is then the Khazi of the region announced a reward for the capture of notorious bandit Abu Hassan. A young girl named Fatima whose father had been murdered by the dacoits had a score to settle with Abu Hassan. Fatima pledged her support to Ali Baba in killing Abu Hassan. Shortly, thereafter Ali Baba came to know the secret hideout of Abu Hassan and its magic spells to open it. He also gets some gold and jewelry from there, which he distributes amongst villagers for diverting some water to their parched land. Ali Baba then informed the Khazi about Abu Hassan's hideout. What Ali Baba did not know is that the Khazi and Abu Hassan was the same person, and that the Khazi had given instructions to his men to ensure that Ali Baba was killed, so that no one could get their hands on his treasure. Abu Hassan sent men to kill Ali Baba. Ali Baba comes to know of this threat and survived with the help of Fatima. He brought to light the startling truth that the city's own ruler headed the dacoits. Adventures with Aladdin After his mother died, Ali Baba was taken in by Balbadd's King, as the third prince. Wherever possible, he began to study languages, economics, fencing, and more in order to learn how to become a good ruler. Hence, his forte was in Balbadd's Royal Fencing. However, his bed-ridden father died after an incident involving him and Cassim. Feeling as responsible for it, he left Balbadd. Upon meeting Aladdin in the city of Qishan, he captured the 7th Dungeon "Amon" with his help. With the treasures acquired from it, he became the lord of Qishan and freed all of the slaves including Morgiana before returning to Balbadd, where he joined the Fog Troupe, a band of Robin Hood-esque thieves armed with magic tools started by Cassim, as "The Wonder Man Alibaba" in order to stop the tyrannical rule of his older adoptive brother, King Abhmad. With help from Aladdin and his frends, Alibaba found a pacifistic solution by having the monarchy dissolved and making the country into a republic, despite losing its sovereignty to the Chinese Kou Empire. Since then he trained swordsmanship with Sinbad's general Sharrkan before setting to the Reim Empire's colosseum to learn to control his Magoi with the Yambala Gladiators and unlock the full power of Amon. Upon arriving there, Alibaba learned that the Magoi in his body was in disarray because of Cassim's Magoi that somehow got inside him, interfering with his own Magoi, allowing him to upgrade his powers when he properly fused the two Magoi into one single entity. Alibaba's training helped him to complete his Djinn equip and perfect his skills to the point of fighting on par with Mu Alexius, who is considered the greatest warrior in Reim. Upon learning about the impending war on Magnostadt, Alibaba decided to reunite with Aladdin, who was studying there, appearing in the nick of time to stop Mu from destroying the entire city with his Djinn, and later, assists Kouha Ren and his army against Mogamett's Dark Djinns. Once the Black Rukh medium was unleashed, Alibaba joined the other Dungeon Capturers from Kou and Reim, along Sinbad and his fellow allies to fight it. After returning to Sindria, Alibaba was summoned by Kouen Ren to meet him and Aladdin in Balbadd, but doubting of his intentions, he decides to depart there by himself, accompanied by Morgiana and some other friends against his will. In the occasion, his friends Olba and Toto also became members of his household. As a consequence of a fight against Hakuryuu, Alibaba's soul is sent to another world while his body stayed in the mortal world under Yunan's care during three years until his body and soul merged again and he was brought back to life. In the occasion, he learned a special ability that gave him unparalleled reflexes. Alibaba met Sinbad in the new world 3 years after his apparent death, seemingly to check if Sinbad was himself or if he was being controlled. Consequently, he headed towards the Kou Empire, now in a dire economic crisis, in search of clues to the whereabouts of Aladdin and Morgiana. There he finds out that Hakuryuu has stepped down from the throne and was missing. With Ren Kougyoku crowned as the new empress, Alibaba joined forces with her to prevent the Kou Empire from going bankrupt, but his efforts so far were being hindered by no other than Sinbad himself, who intended to have the Kou Empire ruined in order to force it to join the International Alliance, but accepted his challenge head on, later reuniting with Aladdin, Hakuryuu and Morgiana. Against Kasim Khan Marziana, a Agrabah-based dancer, is abducted by the tyrant Sher Khan, commander of the notorious king Amir Kasim Khan, to his palace. She was rescued by Alibaba, an impoverished woodcutter who fought with Sher Khan and vanquished him. Marziana and her sidekick Dowlath found refuge in Alibaba's house who at the time lived with his sister Ayisha and servant Bulbul. Marziana learned that Bulbul was the servant of Kasim, who had driven them out at the instigation of his cruel wife Salima. Marziana and Alibaba later fell in love. Kasim wanted to recapture Marziana, under Salima's guidance, he invited Alibaba and his household for a feast. Kasim sentenced Alibaba to death, falsely accusing him of attempted murder. Marziana pretended to heed Kasim's order. She declared that Alibaba has been unfaithful to her and he deserved this retribution. Taking a knife, Marziana acted as though she meant to kill Alibaba, but instead cut the rope that binded his hands. A fight ensued between Alibaba and Kasim's thugs (during which Salima is accidentally killed), but Alibaba subdued them and escaped with his allies. Marziana dances at a banquet Alibaba hosts in honour of the guest, when she realizes that assassins are present to kill Ali Baba. Marziana tries unsuccessfully to stab the "oil merchant", she exposed him as Abu Hussain; Alibaba was shocked. This lead to a fight between the two men, which resulted in Abu Hussain kidnapping Marziana and fleeing to the cave. Alibaba chased him and reached the cave where he killed Abu Hussain after an intense battle. After Alibaba rescued Marziana, they married and continued to perform social work. The Forty Thieves One day, Ali Baba is at work collecting and cutting firewood in the forest, when he happens to overhear a group of 40 thieves visiting their treasure store. The treasure is in a cave, the mouth of which is sealed by magic. It opens on the words "open sesame" and seals itself on the words "close sesame". When the thieves are gone, Ali Baba enters the cave himself and discreetly takes a single bag of gold coins home. Ali Baba and his wife borrow his sister-in-law's scales to weigh their new wealth. Unbeknownst to them, Cassim's wife puts a blob of wax in the scales to find out what Ali Baba is using them for, as she is curious to know what kind of grain her impoverished brother-in-law needs to measure. To her shock, she finds a gold coin sticking to the scales and tells her husband. Cassim, had for a time been the leader of the Forty thieves, whose members rotate. While an encounter with his adopted son Aladdin, had changed him somewhat, this discovery intrigued him. Under pressure from his brother, Ali Baba was forced to reveal the secret of the cave. Cassim went to the cave, though it is unknown if he brought Iago with him, but he did take a donkey with him to take as much treasure as possible. He entered the cave with the magic words. But in his greed and excitement over the treasure, he forgot the words to get out again. The thieves find him there and kill him. When his brother does not come back, Ali Baba goes to the cave to look for him, and finds the body quartered and with each piece displayed just inside the cave's entrance, as a warning to anyone else who might try to enter. Ali Baba brought the body home where he entrusted Morgiana, working as a clever slave-girl from Cassim's household, with the task of making others(including Aladdin) believe that Cassim had died a natural death. First, Morgiana purchased medicines from an apothecary, telling him that Cassim was gravely ill. Then, she found an old tailor known as Baba Mustafa whom she pays, blindfolds, and leads to Cassim's house. There, overnight, the tailor stitches the pieces of Cassim's body back together. Ali Baba and his family are able to give Cassim a proper burial without anyone suspecting anything. The thieves, finding the body gone, realize that another person must know their secret, and they set out to track him down. One of the thieves goes down to the town and comes across Baba Mustafa, who mentions that he has just sewn a dead man's body back together. Realizing the dead man must have been the thieves' victim, the thief asks Baba Mustafa to lead the way to the house where the deed was performed. The tailor is blindfolded again, and in this state he is able to retrace his steps and find the house. The thief marks the door with a symbol so the other thieves can come back that night and kill everyone in the house. However, the thief has been seen by Morgiana who, loyal to her master, foils the thief's plan by marking all the houses in the neighborhood similarly. When the 40 thieves return that night, they cannot identify the correct house, and their leader kills the unsuccessful thief in a furious rage. The next day, another thief revisits Baba Mustafa and tries again. Only this time, a chunk is chipped out of the stone step at Ali Baba's front door. Again, Morgiana foils the plan by making similar chips in all the other doorsteps, and the second thief is killed for his failure as well. At last, the leader of the thieves goes and looks himself. This time, he memorizes every detail he can of the exterior of Ali Baba's house. The leader of the thieves pretends to be an oil merchant in need of Ali Baba's hospitality, bringing with him mules loaded with 38 oil jars, one filled with oil, the other 37 hiding the other remaining thieves. Once Ali Baba is asleep, the thieves plan to kill him. Again, Morgiana discovers and foils the plan, killing the 37 thieves in their oil jars by pouring boiling oil on them. When their leader comes to rouse his men, he discovers they are all dead and escapes. The next morning, Morgiana tells Ali Baba about the thieves in the jars. They bury them, and Ali Baba shows his gratitude by giving Morgiana her freedom. To exact revenge, the leader of the thieves establishes himself as a merchant, befriends Ali Baba's son (who is now in charge of the late Cassim's business), and is invited to dinner at Ali Baba's house. However, the thief is recognized by Morgiana, who performs a sword dance with a dagger for the diners and plunges it into the thief's heart, when he is off his guard. Ali Baba is at first angry with Morgiana, but when he finds out the thief wanted to kill him, he is extremely grateful and rewards Morgiana by marrying her to his son. Ali Baba is then left as the only one knowing the secret of the treasure in the cave and how to access it. The Next Forty Thieves In the immediate aftermath of the successful Mongolian conquest of Agrabah(1258) by Hulagu Khan(1256-1268). The caliph Hassan has escaped captivity, together with his young son Ali, and prepares to regroup the remnants of his troops. While staying at the mansion of Prince Cassim, Ali and Cassim's daughter Amara, fearing that they will not see each other again, betroth themselves via blood-bond. As the caliph prepares to leave, Cassim stops him at the last moment. This, however, is the initiation for an ambush by the Mongols, to whom the cowardly prince has sworn allegiance; the caliph and his retinue are massacred, and only Ali escapes. Alone and lost in the desert, he comes across a mountainside where he sees a group of riders exiting a hidden cave. Deducing its opening phrase, he enters the cave and finds it filled with treasure. When the 40 thieves return, they find the boy asleep in their hideout. Upon learning that he is the son of the caliph, and impressed by his courage and determination, the thieves allow him to stay, and their leader, Old Baba, adopts him as his son, Ali Baba. Ten years later, the band of thieves have become a group of Robin Hood-style resistance fighters, raiding the Mongols and giving to their poor and downtrodden people. One day, they learn of a caravan bearing the new bride for the Khan to Bagdad, which seems to be rich pickings because it is apparently only loosely guarded. However, Ali Baba, now a grown man, is suspicious and decides to scout the caravan first, along with his 'nanny' Abdullah. The bride turns out to be Amara, Cassim's daughter, who is to be wed to the Khan in order to solidify Cassim's somewhat shaky standing with the Mongols. In the meantime, Amara decides to take a bath in the oasis, where Ali encounters her (they do not recognize each other, however). Taking her for a mere servant girl and passing himself off as a traveller, he asks her about the caravan, then more about herself. But then it turns out that the caravan is in fact heavily guarded; Ali is ambushed and captured, while Abdullah narrowly escapes. Upon learning that the 'servant girl' is the bride of the Khan(her name is unknown), Ali curses her for her supposed treachery. Hurt by his words and in growing admiration for him and his cause, she asks her servant and bodyguard, Jamiel, who hero-worships the 40 thieves, to give Ali some water for the trip. In Agrabah, Ali is presented to the Khan, though he is not recognized as the leader of the 40 Thieves, and bound to a pillory in the palace square for public execution the next day. Cassim visits him in private and discovers Ali's true identity, but keeps the knowledge to himself. Soon afterwards, the thieves mount a rescue, but Old Baba is mortally wounded; Amara, who went to see Ali to clear the misunderstanding between them, is kidnapped, and Jamiel personally cuts Ali loose from his bonds. The thieves retreat into Mount Sesame. The next day, the thieves capture Jamiel, who was tracking them. Ali recognizes him as a friend, and Jamiel, who swears allegiance to Ali Baba, is assigned as a spy in the palace. His first task is to deliver a ransom note to the Khan: in exchange for his bride, Hulagu Khan is to surrender the traitor Cassim. The thieves proceed to Cassim's mansion to await the traitor's arrival. When Amara walks into the garden, Ali recognizes her as his lost love, and with his re-awakened feelings for her he decides to release her without waiting for her father. This initially arouses the anger of his band, but they still remain loyal to him. When Amara returns to Agrabah, her father confesses Ali's true identity to her and the Khan. Hulagu Khan decides to hold the wedding immediately; Amara refuses, but the sight of her father being tortured (actually, a ruse) forces her to give in. Jamiel brings the news to Ali, who decides to free his love. In order to reach the palace unnoticed, he devises the plan to pose as a merchant from Basra who brings forty huge jars of oil as a wedding gift. Jamiel returns to the palace to relay the plan to Amara, but they catch one of her servants eavesdropping. The girl then relays the news to Cassim and the Khan, who decide to welcome Ali in a fitting manner. At the wedding day, Ali does appear as the merchant and is admitted as a guest. During an interlude, sword dancers appear, who first perform their routine and then suddenly plunge their weapons through the jar covers - but the jars contain only sand. Upon discovering the exposure of the original plan, Ali had decided to make a few changes: most of the thieves came disguised in the crowd; some others were hidden in jars which were not brought before the Khan. Hulagu Khan kills Cassim for his failure and announces Ali's execution, but then Jamiel opens the revolt by dispatching Ali's guards with his throwing knives. While the thieves attack the palace guards, he and Amara open the gates for the mob, which storms in and overpowers the Mongols. Hulagu Khan is killed by Abdullah while preparing to finish Ali, and as a sign of victory Jamiel hoists the Arabian flag atop the palace's highest tower.Category:Characters